FSF launch petition against ‘secure boot’restrictions

The Free Software Foundation is a petition started against the possible consequences of the ‘secure boot’-option where Windows 8 is going to be used. The fear is that computer manufacturers under pressure from Microsoft other OS’and does not boot.

Although Microsoft denies that the use of the secure boot option in uefi through Windows 8 the user will be limited in his freedom of choice, the Free Software Foundation that they are seriously concerned about the new feature. The foundation explains that users in secure boot are not able to indicate what software they trust because the system uses cryptographic keys that are used exclusively by software manufacturers can be created.

It is also according to the organization, the risk that computer does not have the ability to go to the secure boot feature in the bios-successor uefi to turn off, allowing an operating system such as Linux can not be started and the user so only Windows can boot. Linux will probably get no support for the feature, claimed Red Hat earlier, because this is in conflict with the gpl terms would be.

The FSF, that this scenario of restricted boot is called, it calls the public to a petition to sign. These computer manufacturers called for in every uefi implementation is able to provide the secure boot mechanism to turn off or to an alternative method to provide non-Windows operating systems can be started. If manufacturers fail to do so, the FSF is that their followers will recommend such pc’s and laptops not to buy.